Well, not exactly the Wild West, but Santiago is the town on the far side of the lake with a very high indigenous population and a notoriously wild reputation. The townspeople banished the state police and now rule themselves. A recent incident involving the murder of a tourist led me to decide, for once, on taking a tour boat rather than the public ferry. Not that much more expensive and much safer.
Santiago is certainly different from the gentle small villages lining the lake, but by the time our boat deposited us there I was up for the change of pace. We‘d traversed the water via San Juan and San Pedro, where I had a pleasant time revisiting my favourite haunts in these lazy artisan towns with their fascinating street art and picturesque lanes but the hussle and hassle of the Santiago dock was an enjoyable thrill. I liked the hectic, manic feel of this working town.
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| Women weavers CoOp in San Juan |
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| Guatamalan street signs - for the Women's CoOp I think! |
The daily market was still thronging with vendors desperately trying to sell all their stock as in this heat meat and fish must be freshly slaughtered daily. Open top vans full of people (and guns) drove madly round the busy streets and the park was alive with families. Once I d got my bearings I opted out of the visit to ‘the shaman’ (um) and felt safe enough to wander down to the banks of the creek to admire the shallow waters of this steep inlet.
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| Waiting for the boat - Any boat! |
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| San Pedro from the water |
The afternoon waves were up with a vengeance for the return journey. The jolting was the worst it's been, everyone got a drenching in the open wooden boat, and getting off was so perilous on the rickety wooden piers the boatmen decided to land us elsewhere. As I type I am feeling the rooftop terrace move beneath me, metaphorically speaking, too much time at sea today!
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| Santiago Lakeside |
Tomorrow I move on to Xela, somewhere in the highlands. I will take with me fond memories of this hostel, it is friendly and family run (despite the noise, animal and human!) and of my time by this beautiful lake.
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